Being Mom to Twins

The girls have now been home for one week - one long but very good week. So far, being a mom to twins has not been all that different to being a mom to just one baby, except that I wash and sterilize so many freakin' bottles, change so many diapers, and do so many loads of laundry each day that I shudder to think of what our water and electric bill will be this month.

I hate that it has taken me so long to blog because its hard to summarize what the past week has been like. Here are a few "highlights" to update those who read this blog and for me to remember years from now when I look back at what the first week home was like:

1) Although they are 3 weeks old now, Carter and Catie act very much like a few-days-old newborn -- they usually have to be awaken every three hours to eat and then fall asleep fairly quickly thereafter. This has given me time between feedings to pump more breastmilk for them, get some things laundered and washed and have a few minutes to myself before it is time for them to eat again.

2) Ellis had 3 weeks paternity leave when Will was born but, unfortunately, does not have that kind of leave with his new job. He had to return to work Monday, but because the girls sleep so much, I have managed just fine on my own this week. In fact, I have enjoyed the time of being alone during the day to get used to being a mom to a newborn again. However, I remember this period from Will's early days. I think it was around week 3 that things got very difficult as the sleep stages slowly turned to more and more periods of him being awake. My mom is on standby to help out more when I need another paid of hands (or 3 or 4!). :-) I have not experienced the time where both girls are crying in stereo - in fact, they have cried very little so far.

3) It would be so nice if I could figure out how to feed both girls at the same time. They are just so little that I have found it impossible to get it coordinated enough without making a total mess and losing my mind. Right now, they are not crying to eat, so I have time to change one, feed them and get them settled back down before I get the other one, change her and feed her. However, it is a long process, particularly because (for now) I am pumping breastmilk for them after each feeding. It takes about an hour and a half from start to finish. Then, I have about an hour or so to wash bottles, have me-time (like blogging) before it is time to get ready for them to eat again.

4) Speaking of feeding, the girls are both now eating 2 ounces of breastmilk with a little bit of Neosure added in for extra calories. We have come a long way from when they started out getting just 6 or 7 mL of breastmilk at each feed through a tube in their nose! :-) Because they are already taking 2 ounces, I am hopeful that we will see a big weight gain when we go back to the pediatrician next Friday.

5) We are a little concerned that Catie may have the milk protein intolerance to breastmilk that her brother did. She has started to grunt and scrunch up in pain like he did. But when the intolerance really hit Will it was so horrible for all of us (until I relented and put him completely on formula) that I think Ellis and I are super sensitive to it. I am hoping that it is just gas and that both girls will be fine.

6) I have not gone anywhere with the girls outside of the house yet (other than to the pediatrician last Friday). I'm just not brave enough to haul this much baby around. I did take the "bus" (see picture below) for a walk with the girls around the neighborhood yesterday. The weather has been absolutely beautiful this week, and it felt great to get outdoors with them. However, I had done zero exercise in the past 4 months or so when I was pregnant (in the end, I could barely even bend down to pick things up), plus, of course, I am getting very little sleep these nights. I did NOT think about that when I went for a brisk walk with them yesterday morning. Needless to say, our little walk kicked my butt and I was exhausted for the entire rest of the day. I need to work on that!

7) The girls had their first bath last weekend. Catie screamed bloody murder through the entire experience, but Carter, after initially screaming her head off, tolerated it okay.

8) Will has actually done spectacularly well with his sisters. I adore seeing him poke at their nose or tell them they are "so cute" and that he "loves them." He has had his difficult moments, but part of that is just his being 3. They really discover the meaning of the word "no" at this age. Whew! His sisters also sleep so much that I don't think he has really had to see how much time they will take from Mommy and Daddy. We are trying very hard to include him though, and I love being able to still snuggle up to him whenever I can.

9) The one thing I could not do without this week are the Boppy Newborn Loungers that I got for each of them. They are just too little for the bouncy seats, swings, or even a regular Boppy pillow yet. They spend a lot of time on the loungers, particularly when eating.

10) Catie and Carter sleep in a mini-crib I bought for our room at night and in the pack n' play downstairs during the day. They also sleep in their Boppy Loungers in the afternoon. I have a changing station set up in the dining room for during the day, and they pretty much get changed at the end of our bed at night. We are not using the nursery yet ... in fact, now that I think of it, the girls have not set foot in their room yet. But that time will come soon enough.

Whew - okay - that's all I can think of right now. I hope to be better about posting about little things so that it takes me 10 minutes to post a little blurb about how things are going over here rather than a 45 minute essay! :-) Overall, they are just sweet little girls, and I love getting to know their different personalities more and more each day!!